Ken Follett - Code to Zero (2000)

Anthony shook his head to clear it as he walked across the parched grass. He was carrying the small bag that held his gun, a false passport, and five thousand dollars in cash, the emergency kit without which he never caught a plane.

Adrenalin enlivened him. In the next few hours he would kill a man, for the first time since the war. His stomach tensed as he thought of it. Where would he do it? One option was to wait for Luke at Huntsville Airport, follow him as he left, and gun him down on the road somewhere. But that was high risk. Luke might well spot the tail and escape. He would never be an easy target. He could yet slip away if Anthony were not extremely careful.

It might be; best to find out where Luke was planning to go, then get there ahead and ambush him. 'I'm going to make some inquiries at the base,' he said to Pete. 'I want you to go to the airport and keep watch. If Luke arrives, or anything else happens, try to reach me here.'

At the edge of the airstrip, a young man in the uniform of a lieutenant waited with a card that read: 'Mr. Carroll, State Department' Anthony shook his hand. 'Colonel Hickam's compliments, sir,' the lieutenant said formally. 'As requested by the State Department, we have provided you with a car.' He pointed to an olive-drab Ford.

'That'll be fine,' Anthony said. He had called the base before catching his plane, brazenly pretending he was under orders from CIA Director Alan Dulles, and demanded army cooperation for a vital mission the details of which were classified. It had worked: this lieutenant seemed eager to please.

'Colonel Hickam would be glad if you would drop by headquarters at your convenience.' The lieutenant handed Anthony a map. The base was enormous, Anthony realized. It stretched several miles south, all the way to the Tennessee River. 'The headquarters building is marked on the map,' the soldier went on. 'And we have a message, asking you to call Mr. Carl Hobart in Washington.'

'Thank you, Lieutenant Where's Dr Claude Lucas's office?'

'That'll be the Computation Laboratory.' He took out a pencil and made a mark on the map. 'But all those guys are down to Cape Canaveral this week.'

'Does Dr Lucas have a secretary?'

'Yes - Mrs. Marigold Clark.'

She might know Luke's movements. 'Good.'

Lieutenant, this is my colleague Pete Maxell. He needs to get to the civilian airport to meet a flight'

'I'd be glad to, drive him there sir.' .

'I appreciate that. If he needs to reach me here at the base, what's the best way?'

The lieutenant looked at Pete. 'Sir, you could always leave a message at Colonel Hickam's office, and I would try to get it to Mr. Garroll'

'Good enough,' Anthony said decisively. 'Let's get going,'

He got into the Ford, checked the map, and started out It was a typical army base. Arrow-straight roads ran through rough woodland broken by neat rectangles of lawn close cropped like a conscript's haircut. The buildings were all flat-roofed structures of tan brick. It was well signposted, and he easily found the Computation Lab, a T-shaped building two storeys high. Anthony wondered why they needed so much space to make calculations, then realized they must have a powerful computer in there.

He parked outside and thought for a few moments. He had a simple question to ask: where in Huntsville did Luke plan to go? Marigold probably knew, but she would :be defensive of Luke and wary of a stranger, especially one with two black eyes. However, she had been left behind here when most-of the people, she worked with had gone to Cape Canaveral for the big event, so she was probably also feeling lonely and bored.

He went into the building. In an outer office were three small desks, each with a typewriter. Two were vacant The third was occupied by a Negro woman of about fifty wearing spectacles with diamante rims, and a flowered cotton dress printed with daisies. 'Good afternoon,' he said.

She looked up. He took off his sunglasses. Her eyes widened in surprise at his appearance. 'Hello! How can I help you?'

With mock sincerity, he said: 'Ma'am, I'm looking for a wife who won't beat me up.'

Marigold burst out laughing.

Anthony pulled up a chair and sat to one side of her desk. 'I'm from Colonel Hickam's office,' he said. 'I'm looking for Marigold Clark. Where is she?'

'That's me.'

'Oh, no. The Miz Clark I'm looking for is a grown woman. You're just a young girl.'

'Now, you stop your jive,' she said, but she smiled broadly.

'Dr Lucas is on his way here - I guess you knew that'

'He called me this morning.'

'What time do you expect him?'

'His plane lands at two twenty-three.'

That was useful. 'So he'll be here around three.'

'Not necessarily.'

'Ah. Why not?'

She gave him what he wanted. 'Dr Lucas said he's going home first, then he'll stop by here/

That was perfect Anthony could hardly believe his luck. Luke was going from the airport straight to his house. Anthony could go there and wait, then shoot Luke as soon as he walked in the door. There would be no witnesses. If he used the silencer, no one would even hear a shot; Anthony would leave the body where it fell and drive away. With Elspeth in Florida, the corpse might not be found for days.

Thank you,' he said to Marigold. He stood up. 'It was a pleasure to meet you.' He left the room before she could ask his name.

He returned to the car and drove to the headquarters building, a long three-storey monolith that looked like a prison. He found Colonel Hickam's office. The colonel was out, but a sergeant showed him to an empty room with a phone.

He called Q Building, but did not speak to his boss, Carl Hobart. Instead he asked for Carl's superior, George Cooperman. 'What's up, George?' he said.

'Did you shoot at someone last night?' said Cooperman, his smoker's voice sounding even more gravelly than usual.

With an effort, Anthony put on the swashbuckling persona that appealed to Cooperman. 'Aw, hell, who told you that?'

'Some colonel from the Pentagon called Tom Ealy in the Director's office, and Ealy told Carl Hobart, who had an orgasm.'

'There's no proof. I picked up all the slugs.'

'This colonel found a hole in the rucking wall about nine millimetres wide and he guessed what caused it. Did you hit anybody?'

'Unfortunately not'

You're in Huntsville now, right?'

'Yeah.'

'You're supposed to come back immediately,'

'Then it's a good thing I didn't talk to you.'

'Listen, Anthony, I always cut you as much slack as I can, because you get results. But I can't do any more for you on this one. You're on your own from here buddy.'

'That's how I like it'

'Good luck.'

Anthony hung up and sat staring at the phone. He did not have much more time. His Billy the Kid act was wearing thin. He could disobey orders for only so long. He needed to wrap this up fast...

He called Cape Canaveral and got, Elspeth on the phone. 'Have you talked to Luke?' he asked her;

'He called me at six-thirty this morning.' She sounded shaky.

'Where from?'

'He wouldn't say where he was, where he was going, or what he intended to do, because he; was afraid my phone might be tapped. But. he told me; you were responsible for his amnesia.'

'He's on his way to Huntsville. I'm at Redstone Arsenal now. I'm going to your house to wait for him there. Will I be able to get in?'

She answered with another question. 'Are you still trying to protect him?'

'Of course.' .

'Will he be okay?'

'All I can do is my best.'

There was a moment's pause, then she said: 'There's a key under the bougainvillea pot in the back yard.'

'Thanks.'

'Take care of Luke, won't you?'

'I said I would do my best!'

'Don't snap at me,' she said with some of her more usual spirit I'll take care of him.' He hung up.